Maryland/NU Free Throw Disparity

[Palindrome]

Puzzled. Usually a team that relies on 3-point shooting in a game is not the beneficiary of lots of FTs, right? Maryland cranked up twice as many 3’s as the Cats did.

Yet, Maryland got 29 free throws to NU’s 13. That’s essentially the story of the game, bottom line, as the Cats won the “floor game” by 4 points, if you zero out the Terp’s 26-11 made free throw advantage. NU’s FT accuracy was excellent at 85% which we would be happy about in any game.

This is not a harrangue about officiating but rather a question about what happened that the Cats were so foul-prone against a team that was cranking up long balls at the rate they were? Is it generally poor technique by NU on defense that I don’t notice, and maybe playing with a short bench tires guys out and they resort to doing too much reaching versus playing consistenly strong position defense. Or maybe it’s simply inexperience re: not knowing how to play aggressively without being called for fouling.

These possible explanations are obviously not mutually exclusive, but what do you guys think so I'm prepared to watch for it more closely in the future?

 

[Max_Power]

This particular crew does NU no favors. On one hand there is and athleticism issue but on the other you can call a foul every play and in the first 7 minutes of the second half the refs did this. This included 2 or three offensive fouls that contributed to the initial Maryland run. Fouls changed the flow of this game. In particular an offensive foul called on Nance for being tall and making a spin move on Cowen made Nance sit at the start of the second. Nance had 9 in the first half so this was a big deal. I have seen this way too much with this particular crew. NU gets a lead and all of a sudden the other team is in the bonus. Now I do believe that Collins preaches physical defense and fouling but at the same time, Maryland is not particularly more athletic than Illinois or Indiana. This type of disparity is too extreme. Usually free throws sort themselves out but for whatever reason this crew seems to find calls to make against the cats.

 

[Purple Pile Driver]

I cringe everytime I see this crew. Watch them in any game, it’s always a foul fest.

 

[GatoLouco]

This is not a harrangue about officiating but rather a question about what happened that the Cats were so foul-prone against a team that was cranking up long balls at the rate they were? Is it generally poor technique by NU on defense that I don’t notice, and maybe playing with a short bench tires guys out and they resort to doing too much reaching versus playing consistenly strong position defense. Or maybe it’s simply inexperience re: not knowing how to play aggressively without being called for fouling.

There were some bad calls, and the 1st half calls might have been even more puzzling. But ultimately we would have been in foul trouble with another crew anyway.

As I saw it, it had a lot to do with the zone. Maryland figured out how to attack it like 6 to 8 minutes into the first half. They made 2 or 3 shots from deep and went cold till half time. Second half they dismantled it.

While zone defenses, in theory, protect from fouls, they can be very tricky if the other team figures out ways to drive into it. And they did, and the collapsing players fouled a lot.

 

[CappyNU]

There are no crews in college basketball. Last night's game was the first time these 3 refs worked a game together this year. The two white refs from last night have worked 9 games together this year out of the 40-50 games each ref has worked this year. College reffing is largely regional when it comes to getting assignments.

 

[Fitz51]

B1G ranks, free throw attempts.

Indiana 8

Maryland 24

Illinois 65

OSU 84

Nebraska 99

Iowa 105

MSU 109

PSU 138

Rutgers 219

Minny 257

Purdue 279

Wisconsin 290

NU 298

Michigan 335

 

[CatJones]

Why do the refs hate Michigan so much?

 

[hdhntr1]

Puzzled. Usually a team that relies on 3-point shooting in a game is not the beneficiary of lots of FTs, right? Maryland cranked up twice as many 3’s as the Cats did.

Yet, Maryland got 29 free throws to NU’s 13. That’s essentially the story of the game, bottom line, as the Cats won the “floor game” by 4 points, if you zero out the Terp’s 26-11 made free throw advantage. NU’s FT accuracy was excellent at 85% which we would be happy about in any game.

This is not a harrangue about officiating but rather a question about what happened that the Cats were so foul-prone against a team that was cranking up long balls at the rate they were? Is it generally poor technique by NU on defense that I don’t notice, and maybe playing with a short bench tires guys out and they resort to doing too much reaching versus playing consistenly strong position defense. Or maybe it’s simply inexperience re: not knowing how to play aggressively without being called for fouling.

These possible explanations are obviously not mutually exclusive, but what do you guys think so I'm prepared to watch for it more closely in the future?

While true, the real disparity occurred in the second half. MD changed their game plan and started taking it more inside. Other than Turner and Spencer, everyone else we have is in their first or second year and just don't have the strength of a more seasoned team. The result is they end up wearing down as is evident in second half. MD starts taking it inside and we are a little slower to the spot or if hit, our guys move a little bit so are not square or reach and then they get called for a blocking foul rather than MD called for a charge or no call. Seemed like every foul called against us was in act of shooting so their two point shots do not show up as they are going to the line. t is also true that home teams generally tend to get a few more fouls called in their favor, we really do not as it tends to be more of a neutral court because of our lack of fan base.

While I thought the refs were not good, at all, I do not think they were as bad as many think. I think when we get to next year, much of this kind of thing will disappear as we get older, stronger and more depth.

 

[hdhntr1]

B1G ranks, free throw attempts.

Indiana 8

Maryland 24

Illinois 65

OSU 84

Nebraska 99

Iowa 105

MSU 109

PSU 138

Rutgers 219

Minny 257

Purdue 279

Wisconsin 290

NU 298

Michigan 335

Is that against?

 

[FeralFelidae]

This particular crew does NU no favors. On one hand there is and athleticism issue but on the other you can call a foul every play and in the first 7 minutes of the second half the refs did this. This included 2 or three offensive fouls that contributed to the initial Maryland run. Fouls changed the flow of this game. In particular an offensive foul called on Nance for being tall and making a spin move on Cowen made Nance sit at the start of the second. Nance had 9 in the first half so this was a big deal. I have seen this way too much with this particular crew. NU gets a lead and all of a sudden the other team is in the bonus. Now I do believe that Collins preaches physical defense and fouling but at the same time, Maryland is not particularly more athletic than Illinois or Indiana. This type of disparity is too extreme. Usually free throws sort themselves out but for whatever reason this crew seems to find calls to make against the cats.

Yes, 7 minutes into the 2nd half and the Twerps were already in the bonus. Absurd.

 

[GatoLouco]

Other than Turner and Spencer, everyone else we have is in their first or second year and just don't have the strength of a more seasoned team.

Strength plays a big role. So does height, but we are not lacking in the department. Lastly, is quickness. We have Spencer, Turner and Buie that, in theory, can keep up with faster players. Others have a much harder time staying in front of opponents.

Our starting 5 has a lot of height. But also has Kopp and Beran (and often Nance) forced to face up against much faster players. And their lateral movement is going to be a problem. That's the only reason I kind of accept the amount of zone we play.

 

[NJCat]

While true, the real disparity occurred in the second half. MD changed their game plan and started taking it more inside. Other than Turner and Spencer, everyone else we have is in their first or second year and just don't have the strength of a more seasoned team. The result is they end up wearing down as is evident in second half. MD starts taking it inside and we are a little slower to the spot or if hit, our guys move a little bit so are not square or reach and then they get called for a blocking foul rather than MD called for a charge or no call. Seemed like every foul called against us was in act of shooting so their two point shots do not show up as they are going to the line. t is also true that home teams generally tend to get a few more fouls called in their favor, we really do not as it tends to be more of a neutral court because of our lack of fan base.

While I thought the refs were not good, at all, I do not think they were as bad as many think. I think when we get to next year, much of this kind of thing will disappear as we get older, stronger and more depth.

Good work on using underlining. Now if you can master bold and italic you'll really be convincing.

 

[ricko654321]

While true, the real disparity occurred in the second half. MD changed their game plan and started taking it more inside. Other than Turner and Spencer, everyone else we have is in their first or second year and just don't have the strength of a more seasoned team. The result is they end up wearing down as is evident in second half. MD starts taking it inside and we are a little slower to the spot or if hit, our guys move a little bit so are not square or reach and then they get called for a blocking foul rather than MD called for a charge or no call. Seemed like every foul called against us was in act of shooting so their two point shots do not show up as they are going to the line. t is also true that home teams generally tend to get a few more fouls called in their favor, we really do not as it tends to be more of a neutral court because of our lack of fan base.

While I thought the refs were not good, at all, I do not think they were as bad as many think. I think when we get to next year, much of this kind of thing will disappear as we get older, stronger and more depth.

I think it was half and half. First, they became more aggressive in 2H and we weren’t moving our feet very well so we committed more fouls. Secondly, most of the 50/50 calls went in their favor, which is the opposite of what is supposed to happen when you are at home.

When you combine those things, it ended up with them getting back into the game in large part due to free points and a huge FT disparity. They also shot well from 3 in the 2H and defended much better, forcing us into too many turnovers.

Very frustrating to watch. We don’t have enough depth to hang with good teams in these physical battles for 40 minutes (most of the time anyways - we will snag 1 or 2 before the end of the season I think). And our players don’t yet know how to stay strong and maintain poise down the stretch in conference games.

 

[ricko654321]

Good work on using underlining. Now if you can master bold and italic you'll really be convincing.

Yeah I was thinking it seemed a bit ridiculous to underline almost the entire comment... I hate when people do that with emails at work

I don’t like the practice of underlining to begin with as it seems to imply that the reader is too dumb to read the entire email, but when you underline the entire thing it starts with that annoyance and then goes a level higher because if you are emphasizing it all you aren’t really emphasizing anything!

 

[ParisCat]

The foul disparity was enormous, but mostly well-deserved, as MD was very aggressive in going to the rim, especially in the second half. And, of course, MD took advantage of it, hitting 89% or whatever. Still, some egregious calls. Early in the second half, Boo got called for an offensive foul on a stupid push-off near half-court. But then, on the very next possession, the MD guard did essentially the same thing to Boo, pushing off with a forearm near the face, and didn't get called. A prime example of bias toward the "better" team.

 

[NJCat]

Yeah I was thinking it seemed a bit ridiculous to underline almost the entire comment... I hate when people do that with emails at work

I don’t like the practice of underlining to begin with as it seems to imply that the reader is too dumb to read the entire email, but when you underline the entire thing it starts with that annoyance and then goes a level higher because if you are emphasizing it all you aren’t really emphasizing anything!

AT LEAST THE POST WASN'T IN ALL CAPS, THAT IS REALLY ANNOYING!!!!!!!!

 

[ricko654321]

AT LEAST THE POST WASN'T IN ALL CAPS, THAT IS REALLY ANNOYING!!!!!!!!

Key to remember that it is key to focus on the CAPS. Pls remember that this is key. Thx.

 

[GatoLouco]

I hate when people do that with emails at work

My personal pet peeve is people who send all their emails marked with:
! High Importance

 

[TheC]

Key to remember that it is key to focus on the CAPS. Pls remember that this is key. Thx.

(Also, one should remember that you really can just ignore what's written in parentheses.)

 

[FeralFelidae]

Key to remember that it is key to focus on the CAPS. Pls remember that this is key. Thx.

That key is the Caps Lock key.

 

[techtim72]

Maybe, on balance, there is a trade-off between height, lateral quickness and stamina. Some height very important. Too much height starts to work against a team? NU is pretty tall.

 

[hdhntr1]

Good work on using underlining. Now if you can master bold and italic you'll really be convincing.

I don't underline and was not attempting to do so. But it started and continued though the post. Since it did not continue into next post, decided not to worry about it.

 

[hdhntr1]

Strength plays a big role. So does height, but we are not lacking in the department. Lastly, is quickness. We have Spencer, Turner and Buie that, in theory, can keep up with faster players. Others have a much harder time staying in front of opponents.

Our starting 5 has a lot of height. But also has Kopp and Beran (and often Nance) forced to face up against much faster players. And their lateral movement is going to be a problem. That's the only reason I kind of accept the amount of zone we play.

I think that as we get stronger and more experienced, the players will be better at anticipating and be able to get to the spot quicker better resulting in fewer of those fouls. As we get more depth at the guard position it is also less likely guys will mismatched.

 

[ricko654321]

I don't underline and was not attempting to do so. But it started and continued though the post. Since it did not continue into next post, decided not to worry about it.

Reasonable. Sorry for giving you a hard time, hopefully it was clear that both Fitzy and I were doing it in good fun!

 

[haywood jahblowme]

While true, the real disparity occurred in the second half. MD changed their game plan and started taking it more inside. Other than Turner and Spencer, everyone else we have is in their first or second year and just don't have the strength of a more seasoned team. The result is they end up wearing down as is evident in second half. MD starts taking it inside and we are a little slower to the spot or if hit, our guys move a little bit so are not square or reach and then they get called for a blocking foul rather than MD called for a charge or no call. Seemed like every foul called against us was in act of shooting so their two point shots do not show up as they are going to the line. t is also true that home teams generally tend to get a few more fouls called in their favor, we really do not as it tends to be more of a neutral court because of our lack of fan base.

While I thought the refs were not good, at all, I do not think they were as bad as many think. I think when we get to next year, much of this kind of thing will disappear as we get older, stronger and more depth.

hard to watch a B1G game and not see at least 4 fould on each team per 10 min played. the league is just too physical in my opinion

 

[DaCat]

Yeah I was thinking it seemed a bit ridiculous to underline almost the entire comment... I hate when people do that with emails at work

I don’t like the practice of underlining to begin with as it seems to imply that the reader is too dumb to read the entire email, but when you underline the entire thing it starts with that annoyance and then goes a level higher because if you are emphasizing it all you aren’t really emphasizing anything!

Reasonable. Sorry for giving you a hard time, hopefully it was clear that both Fitzy and I were doing it in good fun!

The Refs suck! We want MOAR fouls called against the other team!!!

 

[hdhntr1]

Reasonable. Sorry for giving you a hard time, hopefully it was clear that both Fitzy and I were doing it in good fun!

It was and I was fine with it. Just wanted to point out that it was not intentional